Are we too dependent on technology or do we just have too much money?

I needed to get a new litter box. That would be a cat box in
normal language. I stopped by the newest pet store because I
had never been there. It is full of gadgets. It also had an area
with tables and dog or cat beds where you could sit with your pet
while he eats one of the fresh-baked treats that they make. He
can then top it off with a fresh pet sports water imported from
France.

Well back to the litter box. They had quite a collection. They had
one that cost in the hundreds of dollars. It had computer chips
and sensors. As near as I could figure out, when the cat got into
the box, a sensor detected the presence. When the cat left the
box, after a pause, a belt was activated that screened the litter
and dropped clumps into a plastic bag and re-configured the
clean litter. When the bag filled, it could be replaced and
thrown-out. It did other things. It was totally automated.

I didnít think it sounded like a good idea, since it had a very thick
instruction manual. I doubted that the cats would read it. Second,
I could see the cats sitting there activating the thing to watch it
run. I can see the headlines now. Home fire caused by
overheated motor on a litter box.

Being old fashioned, I settled for a ten dollar model from K-mart.
The instructions were only one page long.

Answers

Have you ever been in a house where the owners don't keep up with the cats as well as they should? ICK! I guess it would be good for people like that, or maybe for folks who are away from home a lot...hmmm, you're away from home a lot aren't you Z?

I think you made a good choice by staying away from the fancy model.We have one and if it's not properly monitored keeping the "clumps"
unclumped the damn thing runs and runs because the rake cannot bust the clumps for scooping into the container.This model was about $100.00 or in
other words about $90.00 too much : )

You mean you cat doesn't tell you when it wants go out? If I
ignore Smokey, he willyell at me, if that doesn't work, he will wait
until I am walking by him and trip me, running down to the door.
Normally he starts in the kitchen, runs through the living room, down
the stairs and to the door, usually knocking everything he can get his
paws on over, making noise-the louder the better. I do admit he has to
"work" to get back in. Climb up the side of the house onto the balcony
and knock on the sliding glass door to get let back in (in the
winter-any other time the door has to left ajar for him). He actually
does knock on the door beating it with his front paws over and over
until let in. If we should be so rude as to not wait up for him to
come in at night, (when he is so rudely stuck on the balcony)in the
morning when we do let him in he will yell at us and snub us and trip
us all day long as punishment. A litter box?Him???
It would have to completly replaced after one use, thank you....

Z,
To answer your question,I believe that not having the money to buy
an " instant solution" to a problem can often be beneficial as it
causes a certain amount of lateral thinking.Two examples come to mind.

1.We need a garage but cannot afford to have a conventional one built
large enough to store cars,trailers etc.We would also be looking at
about a year for planning permission.But by building a straw bale
building (which in Ireland is classified as temporary) we can start
immediately and the costs are about a tenth.
The idea has aroused such amusement etc that all the neighbours are
going to come for a bale raising party.(They are all 20 acre farmers.)

2.Boswall's suggestion of dropping pig poo on the Taliban was
great.Talk about a low cost but effective solution.It would also
serve to get around the Ramadan problem as they need a month to
cleanse themselves.

Don't get me wrong,I'd spend money as fast as the next person but
maybe not with the same sense of achievement.I guess Y2K had a few
unexpected benefits!

I think that I saw the one that you mentioned; can't be sure from a
web description. The one that I am talking about had a keyboard.
The damned thing had to be programmed. It had a voice chip
that talked to the cat while it did its thing [you could tell it what to
say, but I suspect that my cats would rebel under these
conditions].

Cherri:

Moi cats don't go outside. They don't live in North Seattle. When
we first moved here 27 y ago, we had roaming dogs, Key-otes
and bobcats. As more people have moved in, we no longer have
roaming dog packs. We still have Key-otes and bobcats. We,
now, also have mountain lions and bears. A few years ago we
had a moose. There are eagles and osprey. The falcons and the
cats do fight.

The joys of living in a rural area with a rapidly regenerating
ecosystem.

Z, To answer your question,I believe that not having the
money to buy an " instant solution" to a problem can often be
beneficial as it causes a certain amount of lateral thinking.

That would be my thought. Though we don't have the restrictions
where I live. No permits needed. My last barn, for tractor storage,
just required calling a friend who came and built it. It has no
electricity, toilet or water; so under the rules, it doesn't exist. I am
sure we will get the rules in the future.

LOL, sorry Z. Didn't meant to scare you away. Some people have a
hard time admitting they made a mistake. The reason I asked was I
seem to remember you had some kind of major issue about email or
censorship or something like that, but I can't recall exactly what it
was. Guess maybe you just got tired of unjamming troll-corrupted
threads.